Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Since I was at a loss how to investigate this controversy, I asked if he were willing to go to Jerusalem and there stand trial on these charges. And when Paul appealed that he be held in custody for the Emperor’s decision, I ordered him held until I could send him to Caesar.

Paul didn’t have to go to Rome. He chose to go because he knew it was God’s Will. He understood that by choosing to go to Rome he would be sacrificing his liberty and his life. However, he did so willingly because he wanted to bear witness to the Good News in Rome before the Emperor even though it would mean his death. Through this action, Paul shows us what it means to be a Christian and put God before all else. Paul could have complained that he was being forced to go to Rome when he had done so much already for God. He could have resisted the idea of going to Rome, thinking he was too important to spreading the word. He could have made any number of arguments against going to his death, but he didn’t. Instead, he accepted God’s Will and let God lead him where he needed to be. We should all be so willing and humble to let God lead us, sometimes where we do not want to go.

What is God asking us to do? Are we willing to leave behind all we know and go to where God is leading us? Are we willing to suffer and sacrifice in order to do God’s Will?

O Lord, lead us to where we need to be.

Amen.